Dispute resolution & litigation
Promptly recover payment for work, goods, or services under The Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 1999.
Disputes
The construction industry is notoriously prone to disputes. Anyone involved in construction for long enough will, sooner or later, be involved in a dispute, even with the very best of intentions.
Disputes can take on dozens of different forms. Typical disputes that we see arising in the construction industry time and time again include:
1. Disputes over defective (or allegedly defective) building works, and over the costs of rectifying defects;
2. Disputes over variations;
3. Disputes over late completion of building works (delays);
4. Disputes over entitlement to payment (including security of payment act disputes);
5. Disputes over design work (whether the design work was done negligently);
6. Allegations of misleading/deceptive conduct.
Business owners can also have disputes amongst themselves, including shareholder and director disputes.
Resolving Disputes Without Litigation
When a dispute arises, it is important to understand the strengths and weaknesses of your own position, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of your opponent’s position. Once those matters are fully understood, then you will be in a good position to approach your opponent to attempt to resolve the matter.
The lawyers at CCS Legal are experts in this process. We can provide you with a complete and accurate understanding of your rights and advise you on the best means of pursuing them without the need to go to court.
The right approach to dispute resolution needs to be tailored to fit the specifics of each matter. However, approaches which tend to enjoy success include:
1. Issuing a letter of demand;
2. Making a “without prejudice” offer;
3. Attending an informal settlement conference or mediation
Litigation
If you have been unable to resolve a dispute through other means, and you are not willing to walk away from your rights, then the final and most powerful option available to you is to take the claim before the court (or a relevant tribunal like the NCAT). Court proceedings tend to be time-consuming and costly, but they will also result in a binding and final decision that you will be able to enforce whether your opponent likes it or not.
We spend a great deal of our time preparing for and running cases in court. We bring a wealth of experience and ability to the table in this regard, and we pride ourselves on giving clients frank advice, getting good commercial outcomes for them, and fighting tooth-and-nail for their rights.